Call For Writers -- 2009

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Luxurious trips, fabulous wealth and the adoration of millions, these are just a few of the things we don’t offer. However, if you are passionate about gaming and more importantly about creating witty, interesting, compelling written content, then we can provide you with both a platform and one of the best communities on the web.

As a writer for GWJ you have the opportunity to build a portfolio of work that can and has launched more than a few writing careers. If you’ve longed for an opportunity to get your shot at writing about video games for a living, then we provide an avenue for reaching that goal. If you have a unique perspective you simply want to share with thousands of your closest friends — well, we can help you with that as well.

Read on to find out details on submitting. Ability to read and follow basic instructions will be part of the deciding factor, so please read carefully.

What to Submit: Submissions should be attached to an e-mail. E-mail entries should be sent to [email protected] with the subject “Call for Writers '09 Entry.” Any entries submitted to an incorrect address, with an incorrect subject or without proper attachments will not be considered.

Submissions should be between 750 and 1,000 words. The topic is unrestricted, but should relate in some way to the video game industry or gamer culture. Submissions should be double spaced with traditional 1” margins and submitted as a Word (.doc) document.

Do not submit links to your blog, old articles on other sites, or your resume. We are looking for original, unpublished material which would be suitable for publication on our front page.

Writers retain all rights to submissions, and we will not print or distribute your submission without prior approval.

When to Submit: Submissions will be accepted through 11:59 pm CST June 20, 2009.

Things You Need to Know: GWJ is not a paying outlet at this time, and there is no guarantee, or even really a plan for compensating our writers.

Instead, GWJ expects all writers (yes, even including me) to participate in a peer feedback and editorial review process. This is really the compensation for being a GWJ writer -- you will get regular, intense feedback from some of the best editors and writers in the business. Of course, you will have to be able to play nice with others and be gracious in accepting criticism.

We do not guarantee that a new writer position will be made available if submitted drafts fail to meet our needs or standards. This isn't a contest where we announce a winner. It's a job application. By the same token, we retain the right to terminate writer relationships at any time and for any reason.

Tips of Crafting a Good Submission:

Be creative — seriously, points for creativity
Hook us from the start — We tend to get a lot of submissions, and are easily distracted.
Proofread — Typos, that’s a paddlin’.
Edit, tighten and improve — Your first draft can be better. Get someone to look at what you write, take your time and put something together that stands out. Rabbit wanted in so bad he sent his "Nigerian Prince" submission out to millions for comments before it came our way.

Is the mighty Elysium and Certis ready for the likes of my writing? Maybe. They will see soon.

I assure you, I am not.

When rabbit says 1000 word piece, they can't all be the word "boner" printed over and over. It'll never fly. They'll say it's "unprofessional" or "idiotic" or "what the hell were you thinking Pyro" but they're just jealous that it's so funny.

"But when the game, the second-person engine, starts again, it tells you about yourself ... like Scheherazade and her king mixed up together in one, trying over and over to tell yourself your own story, and get it right" - You by Austin Grossman

Is the mighty Elysium and Certis ready for the likes of my writing? Maybe. They will see soon.

I assure you, I am not.

When rabbit says 1000 word piece, they can't all be the word "boner" printed over and over.

Dammit! CTRL+A -> DEL.

JUST PUZZLED YOUR ASS UP, SON! -Mr Crinkle
If your hands get tired from button-mashing, remember that toes are the fingers of the feet. - Clemenstation
Schmi was a slave, right? Anakin's father is probably Thomas Jefferson. -Quintin_Stone

Just give it a try. Despite what your midnight fears may be saying, you have not actually created a whole new subspecies of crap. I mean, heck, they put my stuff up there on occasion. Think about that for a minute.

I won't blow sunshine up your skirt. When they say "line by", that's what they mean. The review process can feel harsh even when they're trying their best to be kind. But they don't just dump and run. They'll help with whatever input, however many laps it takes. With their help I've managed to put together some words I'm proud to know are published and I learn more every time.

Besides, this is a two-way street. You get to review their stuff right back, and don't tell me you people don't like a good volley of words.

So get out your AP style guide, and show us what you've got.

This is a general note, but it is also pointed directly at you, DominicKnight. I know where you live and I know what you write.

Maybe this issue is best debated amongst the people who need to get off my lawn. - JoeBedurndurn

I am curious, strictly as a technical matter, why a Word document? For instance, I don't have a copy of Word anywhere nearby, but I can whip up a LaTeX document and compile a PDF from it reasonably easily.

Hell. I'm new to the site, I've never written anything of consequence beyond a couple reviews for TacticularCancer, English is my second language, and I value my creative skills at a bit higher than those of a gnat on fire, but I'll still send something in. I'm guessing you'll appreciate the short break to laugh at me in between reading serious submissions.

Google Translated:
"There is an infinitesimal probability of this tool in a clean and translate any text appropriate for me writing in my words I leave to the mercy of the critical eye of good people in GWJ."

I am curious, strictly as a technical matter, why a Word document? For instance, I don't have a copy of Word anywhere nearby, but I can whip up a LaTeX document and compile a PDF from it reasonably easily.

Well, lets just be honest here: every single paid publication I have ever worked for expects submissions in .doc. Trying to write rigorously in LaTex, while an admirable typesetting tool, seems like trying to run a marathon in clogs, and PDF is entirely inappropriate for collaborating on a document. Competitive formats (I'm looking at you Open Office) are TERRIBLE at things like tracking edits and comments. I've tried, probably every 4-5 months for the last few years, to fall in love with an OSS writing solution and the reality is they all just plain suck if you're doing serious writing.

I don't expect anyone to buy word. I do expect people to follow convention. The minute technology gets in the way of the words, I'm annoyed. You can write in Google Docs, Open Office, or notepad, just save it to .doc when you're done, or convert it at zamzar.

I really should jump on this. I've freelanced a bit over the last few years, but my regular monthly column for a local print mag was recently cut due to budgeting issues. Surprisingly, I rarely received much in the way of feedback from my editors, so a chance to get my feet wet again, and have the results critiqued extensively, sounds great. The only problem is that I've always written about Linux, and never (beyond my blog) about games I'm sure I can sort something out, though.

AP? Noooooooo!!! You can have my Oxford comma when you pry it from my cold, dead hands.

rabbit wrote:

Well, lets just be honest here: every single paid publication I have ever worked for expects submissions in .doc. Trying to write rigorously in LaTex, while an admirable typesetting tool, seems like trying to run a marathon in clogs, and PDF is entirely inappropriate for collaborating on a document. Competitive formats (I'm looking at you Open Office) are TERRIBLE at things like tracking edits and comments. I've tried, probably every 4-5 months for the last few years, to fall in love with an OSS writing solution and the reality is they all just plain suck if you're doing serious writing.

I really like InDesign for commenting and such. It's obviously not even remotely OSS, but it's just so fun. Of course, I'm usually putting together books with some o' dem fancy pitchers an' whatnots, so it's a bit different.

ClockworkHouse wrote:

A giant Cthulu alien just threw the top of Big Ben at Abraham Lincoln's airship.

Seattle, where the weather is unlikely to kill you in an interesting fashion.

I got me to thinking about this during the last writer's call, knocked out a handful of articles, then had a crisis of confidence after Shawn mentioned that nearly all of the submissions they'd had weren't up to scratch. I decided that all but one of them weren't worth the paper they weren't printed on, and shelved the idea.